Outfit | THESE pants are not black either

where to buy

Splendid Athletic Woven pants | $118 at Shopbop, Splendid, Revolve – various sizes/colors are available, Splendid has TONS of colorsSplendid gravity sandals | $43 at Nordstrom, only one size left in the color I have, 6pm has more sizes for $54 (click on the blue sandal above) – size down 1/2 sizeEverlane Ryan tee | old style, it has a huge hole in the front which is why it’s tucked in 🙂 Jas M.B. bag | same style, different color at Barney’s Lizzie Fortunato necklace | not available

Side view 🙂

I bought these pants via Revolve (with their 25% off code, PSWFALL25 – expires today!!) and returned them because the medium was too small. But then a friend got them in a large and said I would love them if I just went up a size, and she was right. I do love them. They’re pretty slim cut, and they’re still a little snug around my calves, but they do stretch out with wear. And I can’t push them up on my leg and style them all cute like the model, but I’m okay with that. Truthfully, I have had a hard time deciding to keep these pants. Why? Because they’re NOT BLACK. If they were black, it’d be a no-brainer – of course I’d keep them. But since they’re green, and a bit lighter in real life than in this picture, I’ve struggled. Not that I don’t have anything to wear with them, just that I worry about “the look.” Can I pull them off? And I’m afraid they’re too “summery” as we’re moving into fall.

Ugh. This is what I go through with every item of clothing. I LOVE THESE pants. Really really love them. But somehow I’m not good enough for them, and I am concerned about the image I’ll portray wearing light green pants. SOOOO ridiculous, I know, but there it is…If I saw them on someone else, I would think “how cute!” and dismiss them as something I couldn’t wear. Now I’m wearing them, and I love them, and I think they look great on me, but still…that ugly voice in my head tells me otherwise. Not all the time, but sometimes.

Just yesterday in my flying tigers post I mentioned that I’m tired of doing that (thanks to Ashe for reminding me that I CAN be that girl) – thinking everything looks better on someone else – and I am. I just don’t know how to stop that dialogue in my head. Maybe I can’t stop it, maybe I just need to ignore it. Which is what I’m doing right now. Because I’m keeping, and wearing these f’ing pants.

Have you ever bought something you loved only to struggle with wearing it because you think you can’t pull it off? Or it doesn’t look as good on you as EVERYONE else??

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Grechen, please silence (or ignore altogether) that voice in your head because a) these pants look fabulous on you, the slim leg line does make you look tall like Susan said and b) there is nothing about these pants that you can’t pull off even the color. It’s not like they are lime green!! Even if they are a lighter green then these pictures suggest, I think the color still works well into acceptable fall/winter wear (hey if mother natures produces this color when the leaves change, there’s no reason you can’t wear it on your body).

I completely understand you thinking that you might not be able to pull something off, I have those thoughts on ocassion. But there are times when you need to not compare yourself to someone else because you don’t have the same body as her and that’s okay and also don’t assume that you can’t wear the same thing too until you try it on. I know you are working through years of self-doubt and that’s difficult, but the fact that you love it speaks volumes and just think of the time you could save just not having that conversation with your internal voice every time you get dressed!

These pants look GREAT on you. I’ve had this on Pinterest for a while, but wondered how they would look in real life, rather than on a model, and love the way they look on you.

Olive green is perfect for fall (esp. in Austin), and it’s one of the few non-black colors that makes it into my wardrobe. I’m also really into the split cuff ankle look right now too.

BTW, in terms of wearing things out of your comfort zone, I received and kept these pants. I was concerned about them looking too puffy, but except for the small pleats on the front, they are pretty slim cut and the fabric is heavy and drapey, so that counteracts. Ok, they’re black, but since they’re not flat-fronted pants, they’re out of my comfort zone!

I can only echo what everyone else is saying. These do look great on you. You’re just uncomfortable with the color, and that’s okay. Because the color is totally within a realm and reality that CAN work with your style, the pieces you own, and it’s just a matter of trying it and putting it into perspective.

It’s hard to decide when to cross the “If I Was Another Girl” line. For me, I try it… on a case by case scenario. After banning brown from my closet, I ordered cognac boots. I purchased a yellow dress. I did these with the intention that – a “yellow dress doesn’t have to mix and match.” It’s a chance to be that other girl, indulge in a piece I love, and it won’t stay orphaned. I think these are a great pair of pants for you because you won’t leave them unloved in your closet. That’s where I try to listen to my intuition…. how much will I really wear this, even if it’s outside my comfort zone? If I love it, and will wear it often.. then I do it. And it’s nice to “be” that girl, even a little bit.

Are you kidding me?!? You look SO fan-friggin’-tastic in these pants! I don’t think your “brain-image” of yourself after weight loss has caught up with reality. I know that there’s an actual syndrome to describe that phenomenon. But give yourself some time and it will happen. You’ll look in the mirror one day and see what WE all see in you! That chic girl with the coolest clothes and sweetest smile! (Now come and slap me upside the head and remind me to be nicer to myself! I buy stuff all the time and think of how cute I could, would, should style it….and then it sits in my closet as I resort to my oversized clothes…my security blanket.)

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